𝓤𝓷𝓲𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓝𝓮𝔀𝓼

Lucky Strike and Dunhill firm British American Tobacco (BAT) has said it is seeing signs that US government efforts to crack down on illicit vapes is helping demand recover for its Vuse brand in America as smokeless products drive growth globally.

The group said that while the vape category in the US continues to be affected by black market products, it has seen recent encouraging sales improvement in the US.

BAT still expects group-wide Vuse revenues to fall by a high single digit over the full-year, though declines have eased from a 13% plunge in the first half as a result of the illicit market pressures in the US and Canada.

Tadeu Marroco, chief executive of BAT, said: “Over time, we believe Vuse is well positioned to benefit from stronger federal and state level enforcement.”

Despite the vaping market issues, the group is on track for a return to full-year profit growth in the US, it confirmed.

Worldwide, BAT has seen revenues for its smokeless products, also including oral nicotine patches, accelerate to double digits over the second half of the year so far.

It is expecting mid-single digit revenue growth for the smokeless division over the year as a whole while overall group revenues are set to increase by around 2% at constant exchange rates.

BAT is also on track to deliver about 2% adjusted profit from operations at constant rates.

In a boost to shareholders, BAT announced plans for £1.3 billion of share buybacks in 2026.

Mr Marroco said the firm’s “full-year delivery remains on track”.

He said: “I am particularly pleased with our momentum in the US, the world’s largest nicotine value pool.”

“While there is more to do, we continue to prioritise investment in our most profitable markets and categories.” he added.